Peoria area Republican lawmakers critical of relief plan

Peoria area Republican lawmakers were critical of an electric rate relief package that passed the Illinois House and Senate Thursday.

Scott Hilyard

The vote to provide $1 billion of rate relief to Illinois Ameren and Commonwealth Edison electric consumers while not extending the now-expired rate freeze fell largely along party lines in the Illinois House and Senate on Thursday.

But several area Republicans in both chambers joined Democratic unanimity in support of a bill that could soon give residential Ameren customers rebates or credits of $100 or more.

State Sen. Dale Risinger, R-Peoria, voted for the bill, then offered it mild praise.

"At this particular time, this is the best thing we can expect," Risinger said in a prepared statement. "But I don’t think we are done. I think we need to continue to work toward a goal of giving utility customers the best possible rate they can get from their utilities."

State Rep. Keith Sommer, R-Morton, also broke ranks and voted for it.

Like Risinger, Sommer’s vote was absent of much enthusiasm.

"I voted for the freeze twice, but that didn’t go anywhere," Sommer said. "This is at least some relief and consumers are owed some relief right now. Is it enough? No. But there were no other options."

Other area House Republicans who voted with the Democrats were Richard Myers of Macomb and Donald Moffitt, who represents Galesburg. The vote in the House was 80-33; and 40-13 in the Senate. The bill awaits the signature of Gov. Rod Blagojevich to become law.

The package includes a combination of rebate checks, credits on power bills for the next few years, assistance programs for low-income customers and a new way for the state to buy electricity in the future.

Most area Republicans, however, voted against the plan, directing criticism at the creation of a new state agency that will buy and sell electricity on behalf of utility customers.

"I would greatly prefer the state not getting into the power business. It has enough trouble already," State Rep. David Leitch, R-Peoria, said.

State Rep. Dan Brady, R- Bloomington was also critical of the new state agency, named the Illinois Power Agency.

"(It) will oversee electric purchases for consumers with members appointed by the Governor, the same governor who this entire year has adamantly refused to intervene at all on behalf of consumers struggling with electric bills that doubled or even tripled," Brady said in a statement.

State Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, also was against it.

He said the bill allows the state to build power plants with public money, something he said teetered dangerously toward a socialized system of energy distribution.

"I’m supposed to tell my constituents that we don’t have money to get our students out of inadequate schools, but that we’re going to build power plants with public money," he said. "This is bad legislation."

Democrats disagreed.

State Sen. David Koehler, D-Peoria, called the Republican criticism over the bill a political cheap trick.

"I totally discount that," he said. "It’s not a strategy to simply shoot holes in everything that comes up."

Koehler added, "It’s a solution that gives immediate relief to people who have really struggled all year with the increases."

State Rep. Mike Smith, D-Canton, defended the new Illinois Power Agency.

"The agency will focus on ensuring that both residential and business customers are receiving affordable and reliable service rather than focusing on profit margins," Smith said in a statement.

The issue of electric rate relief has been percolating since before a 10-year rate freeze — the result of the state’s 1997 electric deregulation law — expired at the beginning of 2007.

Political pressure for change escalated this year as consumers saw dramatic increases in their monthly bills.

Scott Hilyard can be reached at (309) 686-3244 or shilyard@pjstar.com.

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